Reviews tagging 'Genocide'

Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World by Naomi Klein

17 reviews

madisus's review against another edition

dark informative inspiring medium-paced

5.0

A brilliant assessment of the social and political landscape during and directly post-pandemic. Klein is so well-researched and spot-on in her analyses that many of her observations and warnings have already come to bear even just a few months after the book’s publication. I strongly recommend to anyone feeling displaced whether emotionally or physically by capitalism— and especially anyone struggling to understand “How did we get here?”

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Content Warnings

Minor: Rape, Genocide, Xenophobia, and War

katharina90's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

An interesting read that's particularly strong in its last few chapters where Naomi Klein illustrates the violent bigotry and genocidal tendencies inherent to Europe and its colonial projects.

The book is well written, covers a lot of ground and offers much food for thought. 

Trying to tie all of these topics back to the doppelganger motif at times feels like a stretch? I definitely lost the thread a few times but was captivated by Klein's meandering narrative nonetheless.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic, Colonisation, Violence, Death, Islamophobia, Ableism, Racism, Antisemitism, Genocide, Sexism, Police brutality, Gun violence, Xenophobia, Slavery, and Sexual violence

Minor: Dementia and War

nadia's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

3.0

Out of the Women's Prize Nonfiction Shortlist books I've read so far, this book had the strongest start for me and I thought it'd end up shooting straight to the top of the rankings. I loved how the thesis, concept, and context was laid out, but then...

...the book, to me, started to lose its way and go all over the place. I couldn't keep the thread of Klein's argument straight. There were so many interesting ideas and areas of history, politics, and philosophy to explore, but it felt like a lot of the topics could have been books in their own right.

Also, I don't if it's just me but I thought that Klein relied way too much on the plot points of other novels and movies to support her argument, spoiling that content for people who haven't consumed it yet. I skipped several pages so that Roth's Operation Shylock wasn't spoiled for me.

Some of the other works spoiled to varying degrees: The Picture of Dorian Gray, The Double (Dostoyevsky), the "Eight Bites" short story from Her Body and Other Parties, and the film Everything Everywhere All At Once. (And there are one or two others I didn't bother to note down).

Current Women's Prize 2024 Non-Fiction Shortlist rankings:

1. Code Dependent
2. A Flat Place  
3. Thunderclap
4. Doppelganger

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Genocide and War

rissryann's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful informative inspiring medium-paced

5.0

Wow.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Mental illness, Pandemic/Epidemic, Misogyny, Gun violence, Ableism, Colonisation, Xenophobia, War, Genocide, Racism, Police brutality, Homophobia, and Antisemitism

Minor: Rape and Violence

cerysl's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Deportation, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Grief, Islamophobia, Sexism, Ableism, Antisemitism, Bullying, Classism, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Death, Gaslighting, Genocide, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Homophobia, Medical content, Mass/school shootings, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Religious bigotry, Violence, War, and Xenophobia

errie's review against another edition

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Classism, Colonisation, Pandemic/Epidemic, Racism, Genocide, War, and Antisemitism

minniepauline's review against another edition

challenging informative inspiring medium-paced

This is a brilliant book. Klein’s writing is accessible, well-researched and compassionate. It was a very tough read, emotionally, for me. But one I think I’m going to want to revisit.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Violence, War, Torture, Classism, Pandemic/Epidemic, Genocide, Death, Cultural appropriation, Homophobia, Religious bigotry, Racism, Hate crime, Colonisation, Child abuse, Antisemitism, and Murder

oworthyfool's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Classism, Pandemic/Epidemic, Gaslighting, Ableism, Sexism, Colonisation, Death, Grief, Hate crime, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Rape, Homophobia, Racism, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Genocide, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Hate crime, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, Cursing, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Deportation, Bullying, Cultural appropriation, and Police brutality

kirstym25's review against another edition

informative reflective medium-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic, Ableism, and Genocide

Moderate: Xenophobia, Antisemitism, and Colonisation

Minor: Eating disorder

madscientistcat's review against another edition

challenging funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Colonisation, Pandemic/Epidemic, Mass/school shootings, Gun violence, Hate crime, Classism, and Antisemitism

Moderate: Islamophobia, Child death, and War

Minor: Slavery, Rape, Abortion, and Transphobia

Extensive discussion of various genocides and the holocaust specifically